Political bits

(TheFix) "Palin is rapidly becoming the butt of jokes among GOP operatives; she may not care but remember how powerful the chattering class is in the Invisible Primary. To win her party's nomination in 2012, Palin need to recruit some top tier talent and, right now, she would struggle to convince anyone at that level to sign on."

(CNN) Steele writes a Specter based fundraising letter, "When Benedict Arnold defected to the British, George Washington didn't fold the tent and give up either."

(CNN) As predicted, the Miss California has found herself a GOP celebrity, featuring in a NOM press conference and starring in one of their anti-gay marriage ads. (She has all the makings of a rightwing female icon, good looking, blond, and a little dumb mixed with tones of overcertainty and bigotry. See: Elizabeth Hasselbeck.)

And, (Politico) A Republican polling firm has done some field work and come back with the conclusion that the Republicans' best message is "checks and balances" against Obama